Futura
This is how tomorrow arrives:
It sneaks, it slides, it whispers, it shrieks.
It bursts, it coalesces, it overtakes, it explodes.
We never saw it coming; we knew it all along.
We can’t believe our eyes; we’ve seen it all before.
We plan, we hope, we build, we batten down. We give, we commit, we
cross our fingers. We open our eyes and open our hearts. Sometimes
we’re almost ready.

That’s how George Carlin once described the arrival of the future:
little by little, inch by inch, moment by moment. Milton called it
the “never-ending flight of future days.” Or was that
the Moody Blues?
One thing is for sure: Every today is a day of future past. After
all, everything we know is about yesterday, but every decision we
have to make is about tomorrow. And they say tomorrow never comes.

Or does it?

Some people believe it does. You, for example.

And the people of Oregon Health Sciences University. With your generosity
and your commitment through the Oregon Health Sciences Foundation
and Doernbecher Children’s Hospital Foundation, OHSU in 1997
has made remarkable strides in preparing for the always expected (yet
eternally surprising) arrival of tomorrow. The foresight and caring
of almost 28,000 donors has combined with the hard work of thousands
of teachers, scientists, clinicians, students and employees to create
new facilities, new ideas and new expectations. The page is turning,
the century is turning, the world is turning—and you have created
a new future for healing, teaching and discovery.

Look back from here and now: the Class of 1997 (physicians, nurses,
dentists, paramedics, physician assistants, dental hygienists, allied
health professionals) has gone out into the new world of health care
with fresh ideas and exceptional training. Extraordinary biomedical
research discoveries have been made at an unprecedented rate. Tens
of thousands of patients have been treated and helped—on and
off the Hill. A new state-of-care OHSU Emergency Department serves
Oregon. A nationally funded and internationally respected Cancer Center
is creating new knowledge and new hope. A community-driven Center
for Women’s Health is taking shape.

Look forward from here and now: the stunning new Doernbecher Children’s
Hospital is just a few months away from treating its first kid. The
first OHSU classes of the 21st century have come to the Hill and to
teaching sites throughout Oregon. More new biomedical and clinical
research projects than ever are underway. OHSU is the strongest, the
most efficient, the best-prepared to serve the community’s future
that it’s ever been.

Look in any direction and what you see is your work—because
your gifts played a vital role in all of this. Your commitment and
generosity are the future. Never be lulled by the size and scope of
Oregon Health Sciences Foundation and Doernbecher Children’s
Hospital Foundation (or by the scale and success of the university
and missions they support)—the future will always arrive little
by little, gift by gift, good work by good work. You will always be
at its heart. You will always be needed and appreciated.

There’s a moment coming.
Wait for it…almost here…almost here…
Now.
It’s the moment you made possible, and it signals the future
you have helped create. We thank you; and in this report we invite
you to share a few more moments with us…